Maybe Volodymyr Zelensky had some “cards” after all. Contrary to the worst fears aroused after his infamous encounter in the Oval Office in February, the president of Ukraine appears to have secured a remarkably fair and generous minerals deal from the United States.
The “Art of the Deal” may have been Donald Trump’s abiding contribution to literature, but it is Mr Zelensky, it now seems, who used his personal diplomacy with the US president during the funeral for Pope Francis to excellent effect. Free of the barracking and malign influence of vice-president JD Vance – and away from the Russian-inspired propaganda relayed by some of his advisers – Mr Trump was able to listen to his Ukrainian counterpart's case directly.
